Trouble with trickles
At best, water from his garden hose only travels 3 to 4 feet.
“I like a lot of water when I wash my car. There’s not a lot of water pressure in the showers, the sinks,” Browning said.
Since the Manassas Park development was built about 10 years ago, it has suffered from water pressure problems. Water pressure is also low in a few sections of Blooms Crossing.
Showers are a trickle. Garden hoses at full force only spray water a few feet.
The area, which is on a hill, is about the same height as the nearby water tower in Blooms Crossing.
“It would be nice if they fixed this thing,” Browning said.
William Weakley, Manassas Park’s director of public works, says the water pressure in Belmont Station meets the 32 pounds per square inch required in city code. And yet water pressure in other parts of Virginia is usually higher.
“I’m sure there are parts of the city where people would like higher pressure and they are used to it,” Weakley said.
Manassas Park plans to install a water pump at the Blooms Crossing tower by early next year.
The city has already set aside the $500,000 it needs for the pump, but is waiting for results from a regional water study.
“Hopefully, it’ll be out in the next couple of months,” Weakley said.
Manassas Park, Manassas and Prince William County are hoping to coordinate their systems better by conducting a joint study.
“By doing this together, we can see if one of the jurisdictions might not only be able to improve itself but help its neighbors as well,” said Jim Johnston, Manassas’ superintendent of water and sewer.
Weakley says Manassas Park is waiting for the results of the study, due in a few months, before making a major change to the city’s water system.
Meanwhile, Tim Jones, a Belmont Station resident, continues to wrestle with the trickle of water coming from his shower and kitchen sink.
“When I moved in, a former resident told me that I was going to hate the water pressure,” he said.